The Boston Dolls

The Dresden Dolls are not a new band, in fact they’ve been the underground darlings of the Boston alternative scene since at least 2004. Known for their niche market of German influenced punk cabaret, the Dolls put on an exciting live show and write interesting, humorous, and catchy rock songs. “Coin-Operated Boy”, “Girl Anachronism”, “Sing”, and “Backstabber” are played regularly on local radio stations, and the Dresden Dolls have won numerous BMAs, were mentioned in Rolling Stone magazine, and recently toured with the MTV love-boys Panic! At the Disco.


Despite their popularity in such a seemingly normal city as Boston, the Dresden Dolls consistently push the envelope with their songwriting. The Dresden Dolls combine the catchiness of Broadway with the nonconformist tendencies of punk rock, and a passion for thought-provoking lyrics with a certain flare for drama.


Amanda Palmer who’s in charge of piano, vocals, and lyrics, and Brian Viglione on drums are audacious and dramatic, crying out for your attention like a goth kid with food coloring blood stains painted under his eyes. Bold is a word that readily comes to mind when listening to the new single “Backstabber”, Amanda Palmer’s feminist anthem to the male chauvinists of the rock world that is as powerful and poignant as anything Kathleen Hanna (Le Tigre) has written. Yet, what really captures your attention as you listen to the Dresden Doll’s music isn’t the boldness of the songwriting and delivery, but the echoing emptiness between the loud statements. The staccato beats of the drums and the percussive use of the piano and vocals leave an emptiness around the music, and, like the best literature, the white space that surrounds the sentences is just as important as the written statement.


The Dresden Dolls do not create flavor of the moment music, they are serious and challenging and they have a message beyond the obvious dress in black and shave your eyebrows. The Dresden Dolls are trying to say something and they deserve your attention, so open your ears and listen to the whole song.